Chapter 4
"Ugh," groaned Lex. He sat up and inspected his surroundings. He was in his luxury bedroom on his king-sized bed. He kept his bedroom walls free of posters and instead had weapons like his foil and mace hung on one side and framed pictures of him with his mother on the other. If only you saw me now, mom. He was still in his clothes, except for his shirt, which was neatly laid on his night table.
"What happened?" he murmured aloud. A sharp pain whipped through his chest as if trying to answer his question. He followed the path of pain to the source and found a scar shaped like a backwards "C" or a crescent moon. At the ends of it were two puncture marks that had sealed up. Weird.
Lex shut his eyes and did his best to see if he could remember what had happened to him. All he could remember was his fury at his father for giving him such a crappy (literally) project and then... And then he saw a mental painting of a wolf.
He sub-consciously scratched his neck; then his arm, his leg, his chest, his scar. It all led back to the scar, didn't it? Lex chuckled...and howled.
* * *
Jonathon was impatiently waiting for Clark, who didn't return to the house until nearly seven. When he arrived in the kitchen, Jonathon slammed his coffee mug on the table and embraced Clark in a hug. "Where were you?"
"Dad..." Clark was momentarily speechless. "I saw what killed that cow."
"Are you okay? What was it?"
Clark looked blankly at his father in a search for words. "A wolf. I know we haven't had them in years, but..."
"Last year, didn't you meet that girl, Kyla? She could turn into a wolf."
"Dad, Kyla is dead. I don't think she rose out of the graveyard and came back to haunt the cows. But..."
Jonathon was impatient. "What, Clark? You're holding out on me. Why are you so shocked? Tell me, what did you see?"
Clark gulped. "This wolf could switch between a regular wolf and a wolf-man. It just stood up on its hind legs and began to wave its arms at me. I think it even laughed at me when I fell into the ground."
"A wolf man?"
"There's more. I chased it away from the cattle, but then it went into the streets. I was afraid it might find someone else so I followed it and we ended up at the Luthor Mansion."
A look of horror struck Jonathon's face. He went back to the table and picked up his coffee, took a large sip, and put it back down on the table. "Was Lex awake when all this happened?"
Clark nodded. "The wolf got in and bit Lex. I managed to get in after he was knocked out and saved him. I tossed the wolf into the woods, got Lex to safety, and chased to wolf again. But this time, it decided to run away instead of fighting me."
"It probably thought it didn't have a chance against you."
"That's the thing, it did. It hurt me!"
Jonathon walked over to Clark again. "Son, you have to be careful. No more wolf chases; we'll leave this to the police."
"Dad! If it can hurt me, than it's too powerful for Sheriff Adams and all the police. I have to see if I can stop it."
"I'm not putting you in danger, son. It's my responsibility to protect you, and that's what I'm doing now."
"No, dad. It hurt Lex – who will it go after next? Pete? Chloe?" Clark's voice wavered. "Lana? You or mom?"
"Ok, I see what you're saying Clark, but you have to understand how...how frightening it is to see you in pain. Last time, when you and your mom got sick, I thought I'd never be able to live with myself if I had to go on without you two. I can't lose you. Besides, if that thing is on the same level of power as you, the only thing that could help you is if you got another boost like the one last week."
Clark didn't say anything else.
* * *
Edward ran as fast as he could. If he didn't get home before his parents woke up, he'd be in major trouble. Not to mention that he'd be in an awkward position, considering he was naked. Two sets of clothing had been shredded thanks to his transformation, and he had to pay for clothes with his own money to hide his secret from his parents.
His house was in sight. He leaped over the fence and into the backyard. Making sure all the lights were still off inside, Edward proceeded to climb up the tree planted outside his room. Making as little noise as possible, he crept into his room through his open window. He shivered. Chilly.
Minutes later, he was showered and clothed and calmly walking down the stairs to the kitchen. His father was in the kitchen, cursing at the stove.
"Where's mom?" asked Edward.
"She had to go to work. Since we got back, Lionel Luthor has been top priority for her. I have to get to work soon, too. Breakfast is..." Colin peeked at the stove. "On your way to school, I hope."
Edward nodded and left out the door.
* * *
"Hey, Ed, want to come with me and some friends to the Talon later?" asked Chloe once he'd arrived at school.
"Uh, sure. Which friends?" Edward asked, still a bit nervous about the night before.
"Clark, Pete, Lana – she owns the place so we get a discount."
"A high-schooler owns an entire business?" Edward scoffed. "Only in America."
Chloe giggled, "I'll ignore that, but she actually co-owns it with Lex Luthor. Have you met him yet?"
"No."
"He's a bit of a coffee junkie himself. You'll probably meet him this afternoon. So are you coming?"
"For cheap coffee, of course."
* * *
Lionel walked into Sara Drake's laboratory and inhaled deeply. "Nothing like the smell of flowers and local coffee in the morning, eh, Mrs. Drake?"
"I suppose," murmured Sara, not looking up from her papers. "These notes... who wrote them?"
"The late doctor Steven Hamilton did. How's the project coming along?"
"Fine, I guess. I've figured out the method he used, but I still have to write down the formulas and results."
"Are you ready to clone a plant?"
Sara looked up, "Yes. What plant?"
Lionel chuckled, "Why not the plant that you investigated in Ireland?"
"I don't have it anymore."
Lionel snapped his fingers. On cue, a security guard came in holding a pot with a flower already planted inside. "Now you do."
"Ugh," groaned Lex. He sat up and inspected his surroundings. He was in his luxury bedroom on his king-sized bed. He kept his bedroom walls free of posters and instead had weapons like his foil and mace hung on one side and framed pictures of him with his mother on the other. If only you saw me now, mom. He was still in his clothes, except for his shirt, which was neatly laid on his night table.
"What happened?" he murmured aloud. A sharp pain whipped through his chest as if trying to answer his question. He followed the path of pain to the source and found a scar shaped like a backwards "C" or a crescent moon. At the ends of it were two puncture marks that had sealed up. Weird.
Lex shut his eyes and did his best to see if he could remember what had happened to him. All he could remember was his fury at his father for giving him such a crappy (literally) project and then... And then he saw a mental painting of a wolf.
He sub-consciously scratched his neck; then his arm, his leg, his chest, his scar. It all led back to the scar, didn't it? Lex chuckled...and howled.
* * *
Jonathon was impatiently waiting for Clark, who didn't return to the house until nearly seven. When he arrived in the kitchen, Jonathon slammed his coffee mug on the table and embraced Clark in a hug. "Where were you?"
"Dad..." Clark was momentarily speechless. "I saw what killed that cow."
"Are you okay? What was it?"
Clark looked blankly at his father in a search for words. "A wolf. I know we haven't had them in years, but..."
"Last year, didn't you meet that girl, Kyla? She could turn into a wolf."
"Dad, Kyla is dead. I don't think she rose out of the graveyard and came back to haunt the cows. But..."
Jonathon was impatient. "What, Clark? You're holding out on me. Why are you so shocked? Tell me, what did you see?"
Clark gulped. "This wolf could switch between a regular wolf and a wolf-man. It just stood up on its hind legs and began to wave its arms at me. I think it even laughed at me when I fell into the ground."
"A wolf man?"
"There's more. I chased it away from the cattle, but then it went into the streets. I was afraid it might find someone else so I followed it and we ended up at the Luthor Mansion."
A look of horror struck Jonathon's face. He went back to the table and picked up his coffee, took a large sip, and put it back down on the table. "Was Lex awake when all this happened?"
Clark nodded. "The wolf got in and bit Lex. I managed to get in after he was knocked out and saved him. I tossed the wolf into the woods, got Lex to safety, and chased to wolf again. But this time, it decided to run away instead of fighting me."
"It probably thought it didn't have a chance against you."
"That's the thing, it did. It hurt me!"
Jonathon walked over to Clark again. "Son, you have to be careful. No more wolf chases; we'll leave this to the police."
"Dad! If it can hurt me, than it's too powerful for Sheriff Adams and all the police. I have to see if I can stop it."
"I'm not putting you in danger, son. It's my responsibility to protect you, and that's what I'm doing now."
"No, dad. It hurt Lex – who will it go after next? Pete? Chloe?" Clark's voice wavered. "Lana? You or mom?"
"Ok, I see what you're saying Clark, but you have to understand how...how frightening it is to see you in pain. Last time, when you and your mom got sick, I thought I'd never be able to live with myself if I had to go on without you two. I can't lose you. Besides, if that thing is on the same level of power as you, the only thing that could help you is if you got another boost like the one last week."
Clark didn't say anything else.
* * *
Edward ran as fast as he could. If he didn't get home before his parents woke up, he'd be in major trouble. Not to mention that he'd be in an awkward position, considering he was naked. Two sets of clothing had been shredded thanks to his transformation, and he had to pay for clothes with his own money to hide his secret from his parents.
His house was in sight. He leaped over the fence and into the backyard. Making sure all the lights were still off inside, Edward proceeded to climb up the tree planted outside his room. Making as little noise as possible, he crept into his room through his open window. He shivered. Chilly.
Minutes later, he was showered and clothed and calmly walking down the stairs to the kitchen. His father was in the kitchen, cursing at the stove.
"Where's mom?" asked Edward.
"She had to go to work. Since we got back, Lionel Luthor has been top priority for her. I have to get to work soon, too. Breakfast is..." Colin peeked at the stove. "On your way to school, I hope."
Edward nodded and left out the door.
* * *
"Hey, Ed, want to come with me and some friends to the Talon later?" asked Chloe once he'd arrived at school.
"Uh, sure. Which friends?" Edward asked, still a bit nervous about the night before.
"Clark, Pete, Lana – she owns the place so we get a discount."
"A high-schooler owns an entire business?" Edward scoffed. "Only in America."
Chloe giggled, "I'll ignore that, but she actually co-owns it with Lex Luthor. Have you met him yet?"
"No."
"He's a bit of a coffee junkie himself. You'll probably meet him this afternoon. So are you coming?"
"For cheap coffee, of course."
* * *
Lionel walked into Sara Drake's laboratory and inhaled deeply. "Nothing like the smell of flowers and local coffee in the morning, eh, Mrs. Drake?"
"I suppose," murmured Sara, not looking up from her papers. "These notes... who wrote them?"
"The late doctor Steven Hamilton did. How's the project coming along?"
"Fine, I guess. I've figured out the method he used, but I still have to write down the formulas and results."
"Are you ready to clone a plant?"
Sara looked up, "Yes. What plant?"
Lionel chuckled, "Why not the plant that you investigated in Ireland?"
"I don't have it anymore."
Lionel snapped his fingers. On cue, a security guard came in holding a pot with a flower already planted inside. "Now you do."